Konoha no Shuiro Senkou
by Minion of Set
Summary: What if Naruto's lineage was revealed after he stole the Forbidden Scroll? What if Lee hadn't been around when new teams were selected? What if Team Gai needed a replacement? The results should be very...Yosh! NaruTen. Discontinued...how unyouthful.
1. Yosh!

**Konoha's Scarlet Flash**

Chapter 1: Yosh!

Standing at the north gate of Konoha were three shinobi, their silhouettes shrouded in shadows as the night lamps of the village barely illuminated their standing point.

One was a man in a disturbingly skintight green jumpsuit with orange leg warmers that seemed terribly out of place. He sported a 'hip' bowl haircut and eyebrows thick enough to trap small birds and reptiles for days on end. He could be identified as a shinobi of the Leaf Village: Konohagakure, by the red headband tied neatly around his waist and the unzipped Jonin military vest that he proudly wore. He is Konoha's admittedly self-proclaimed, fiercest beast of battle, Maito Gai.

The second could be considered viable bunshin of the first; only lacking the height and green vest of his sensei. Unlike Gai, this young shinobi wore white bandages around his hands and arms to hide the callouses and bruises acquired by his rigorous training and to help him perform one of his deadliest techniques. The only other difference between master and student was a heavy rucksack slung over his shoulders...for his journey. His name is Rock Lee, the genius of hard work.

The third was a ANBU shinobi with a boar mask. He wasn't Squad Captain material but Ginta was still among the elite of the Hidden Leaf Village. Gai had asked him specifically to accompany his..er, _special_ student on this extended training leave. Maito Gai had saved quite a few of his fellow Leaf ninja in his lifetime. Ginta was one of them. He had gotten permission from his Squad Captain to undergo this mission and repay his debt to the green loon. His orders: escort Rock Lee to the medical temple in Northwest Fire Country and locate Inuzuka Rin; guard Rock Lee with his life as the boy recovered from surgery; escort Rock Lee safely back to Konoha.

A extremely simple mission compared to what the ANBU usually dealt with. And best of all...it came with ANBU pay! Total score!

"Now remember my youthful student," Gai began lecturing his prized pupil with his 'dazzling' smile, "Rin-san is a medical expert! You are in good hands."

"..in..good..hands," Lee scribbled into his tiny notebook. "Understood sir! I promise you Gai-sensei, I will return a splendid ninja!" He accentuated this promise by giving the pact of the highest level of keeping one's word: the nice guy pose.

The surgery that was going to be performed on his twisted, entwined and otherwise badly functioning chakra coils and entombed tenketsu was risky. It would not allow the young shinobi to properly mold chakra but it would vastly increase his overall stamina and resistance to the double-edged blade of his fighting style. There was a thirty-three percent mortality rate for the very few of these surgeries performed..but...

He would not allow for his flames of youth to be extinguished! He still had to defeat his eternal rival and prove, once and for all, that he could be a splendid ninja without the use of ninjutsu or genjutsu!

Crocodile tears ran down Gai's cheeks as his pride in his student welled up. He wiped his eyes with his sleeves. "Yosh! That's my student. The power of youth burns brightly within you!"

Lee became teary eyed as well. "Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

With that, the two embraced one another and the power of youth; tears of pride and joy flowing freely and without shame.

Meanwhile with Ginta..

"The hell?" he asked himself, startled, as he looked at the sunset that had appeared beyond the realm of reason and rationality. "It's freakin midnight..and when the hell did we get to the beach!? Oh I see." He formed the Tora hand seal. "Kai!"

Nothing.

"It's still here." he noted with wide-eyed horror beneath his mask. "I'm scared.."

By this time Gai and Lee had said their...ahem, heartfelt goodbyes.

"Now go my youthful student!" Gai exclaimed as he pointed in the wrong direction. "The temple that will kindle your flames of youth awaits!"

"Yes sir!" Lee confirmed with a salute. Flames burning brightly in his eyes and guiding his darkened path, Lee sped outwards, leaving a trail of dust behind him.

"Ugh! Wait kid," the ANBU called out in vain, "that's the wrong way!" He turned back to Gai quickly. "Uh, see-ya later Gai-san!" The ANBU darted after Lee full sped, running far, _far _away from the still setting 'sun'.

Soon the two were well out of sight and Gai's smile dropped...the setting sun long with it.

With a frown of concentration, Gai shoved his hands into his vest and began walking to the Hokage Tower to see their fearless leader.

His Genin team had already bid farewell to Lee. Tenten had given him a warm hug and wishing him good luck; something she knew both Lee and their sensei highly prized. Neji chilled the friendly scene by simply telling Lee "Don't die yet."

It had been quiet for a few moments after that, before Lee exclaimed that he couldn't die until he crushed his eternal rival. Neji had cringed, hating when Lee called him that, before scoffing indifferently.

Now Maito Gai was in a predicament. A very un-youthful one. He had planned on his team participating in the Chunin Exams this year. The green beast had felt as though his team needed a full year of experience before attaining the mantle of a middle ninja. More specifically, it gave Gai enough time to work on the finest and deadliest aspects of Goken with Lee. But now that his prized student was undertaking this surgery, and would not be fit to perform as a ninja during recuperation, Gai had to find a replacement in order for his team to partake in the Exam. The only question now...

"Is who," Gai muttered to himself. That was why the Hokage had told him to stop by his office tonight. He would be able to pick a student from this years graduating class to help fill in the gap. Before he even considered which student to chose..he had to know who it was that passed.

Hearing the sound of panting brought him from his thoughts. Being a genius of hard work, Gai was more than familiar with the sound of exhaustion. Judging from the labored breaths, his person had been exerting themselves fervently for the last hour or so. Stretching out his senses, Gai listened carefully to the words being exchanged by three.

"Damn that punk demon!" one voice spat out. "Taking the Forbidden Scroll.."

"Yeah," another tired voice agreed, "I knew it was just waiting for the right time to strike."

A third voice spoke up. "I know Hokage-sama said to bring Naruto to him but," a malicious sneer could be felt from the man, "what would happen if the Kyuubi brat had a little..._accident_."

Choosing this moment to step in, Gai appeared behind the Chunin in less than an instant. "What's shaking everybody?" he asked in his happy macho voice. "I understand you all have some sort of missing scroll problem?"

The three ninja stiffened, clearly worried about if Gai had overheard their conversation, and annoyed that he was too fast for them to sense approaching. "Yeah." Chunin number three said cooly, as if he hadn't been considering treason. "That.._kid_, Naruto, stole the First Hokage's Forbidden Scroll of Sealing. We have to find him before he runs off with it."

As the green clad warrior was about to respond, a hawk flew over head. "It would seem, my comrades, that the situation has been resolved," Gai murmured. "If you'll excuse me!" Gai disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving three aggravated Chunin behind.

Several minutes later Gai was at the foot of the Hokage Tower. He briskly walked up the steps and knocked on the door politely.

"Yes Gai-san, please come in." the Hokage called. It wouldn't surprise him the Ninja God could recognize the chakra signature of each and every ninja within a hundred mile radius.

Without further prompting Konoha's Green Beast prodded open the door and looked inside. Sitting behind his desk was Konohagakure's Sandaime Hokage. In a chair across from the Hokage was one Uzumaki Naruto. The boy hadn't so much as glanced at him, a far away look in his eye.

"Is..now not a good time Hokage-sama?" Gai asked as he scratched his head with a befuddled look.

The village leader considered it for a moment, glancing at Naruto before answering. "I believe we should speak tomorrow with the other Jonin instructors." He reached into his desk and tossed him a small book. "This is a list of students who have passed the Graduation exam. Study it and decide who would best suit your team's needs. We will discuss this tomorrow."

"Hai Hokage-sama!" Giving one last glance at the two, Gai closed the door and headed home for the daily rekindling of his flames of youth. In other words...sleep. Once settled into his bachelor pad, he began to review over the list of students whom graduated.

He couldn't help but first look over the file entry for Uchiha Sasuke, what with the entries being ranked from best to worst. It wasn't that he wanted to train the boy himself, lest the counters for the Sharingan be countered. He knew that his eternal rival, Hatake Kakashi, would be taking the Uchiha under his perverse tutelage. The idea of another Sharingan user to challenge Lee, or vice-versa, was quite an exciting one. He silently vowed to train his student in the fine art of beating Sharingan ass upon his return as he read.

Uchiha Sasuke. Rookie of the year. Scored top marks in all but written exams where one student surpassed his scores. Taijutsu is superb, well above that of his peers. Has advanced knowledge of Katon Ninjutsu. Able to dispel Genjutsu at a Jonin level. Has a focused mind and is able to understand new concepts at starling speed. A prodigy.

Gai couldn't help but feel a sense of deja vu. He could have sworn that he'd read the same file a number of years ago. Sasuke's file was _disturbingly_ similar to his elder brother's...and they all knew how well that sociopath turned out. Shuddering slightly at the thought; and realizing once more that he needed to pass down the art of battling Sharingan, just in case _something_ happened, Gai continued to read the files in the book.

Aburame Shino was a promising shinobi. Well balanced and with an extremely tactical mind. But he would do better with a sensei more talented in teaching the art of stealth. Gai's approach tended to be a bit more...direct. What he needed was someone who not only would fit well in his combat specialized team, but an aspiring ninja who could benefit from his training.

The Haruno girl was easily looked over for the facts that he already had an excellent kunoichi on his team and that this girl seemed more interested in her hair and fawning over the young Uchiha than anything else. There wasn't a place on Team Gai for someone who didn't have their heart in the job.

Inuzuka Kiba was the leading choice thus far. Solid family Ninjutsu and Taijutsu. A fitting shinobi to fill Lee's spot.

His eyes easily glided over the profile for the Hyuuga heiress. She had little confidence and with Neji being on the same team it just wouldn't help...at all.

Neither the Akimichi, the Yamanaka or the Nara; the last of whom had been well below average scores, would do. They were better off sticking together for the synergy their techniques created.

The other candidates didn't seem very promising. Most of them, he was sure, would stop ninja training after they failed their Genin test and become civilians. That was a great strength of the Hidden Leaf Village. Most citizens knew at least the three basic academy jutsu, having once trained as shinobi themselves. Though not proficient enough to defeat a well trained Genin, every civilian in th village knew basic self defense maneuvers.

Getting a bit sleepy, Gai yawned widely. Though he was at the peak of his life in physical condition, he had skipped a nights sleep to ensure Lee had everything packed that he needed.

He was on the last few pages, still finding no one student of particular interest. The final page, near where he had skipped ahead to locate the Nara, held the final two entries that caught his attention.

Firstly their was a boy named Sai who joined the academy just a week from graduation. Not much was known about his skills, as no one had time to gauge them, but he had been able to perform the basic three jutsu required of him by the academy and therefore passed. He only took one test prior to the graduation exam..and he hadn't done well at all, making his grades just above Naruto's.

The little bundle of youth had passed the graduation exam by special circumstances...quite similarly to Lee but even more astounding. Not only had the blonde mastered the Kage Bunshin, but he had stopped the treacherous Mizuki from obtaining the scroll. Gai decided to ignore the fact that Naruto had _stolen_ it, and focus on the fact that he had been _able_ to do so in the first place. These revelations of the young Jinchuuriki's abilities left him to question his instruction at the academy.

The boy had very poor Taijutsu and Genjutsu skills; both fields holding premiere specialists right here in Konoha, himself being one of them. Ninjutsu wise, Naruto seemed to have a lot of potential. He didn't understand all the concepts that went into creating a shadow clone, but he knew that even Kakashi, Konoha's foremost Ninjutsu expert, seldom used the technique for the drawbacks that it had chakra wise. If this report was to be believed, Naruto created several times more than the Copy Ninja could on his best day.

The thought of training such a student made him grin sleepily yet at the same time with exuberance. Lee, dedicated as he was to training, had no talent when Gai first met him. None at all. Everything he had in Taijutsu was gained strictly from harsh training. Now imagine what he could do with a spirit as youthful as Lee's..but with many times the raw talent.

With his decision for the third member of Team Gai made, the Jonin decided it was time to sleep. Gai clapped his hands and the lights went out, the disco ball on the ceiling sparkled dully as it spun to life.

The next morning found Gai in the meeting room for the Jonin council. Kakashi, clearly planning on being fashionably late, was nowhere to be seen. Kurenai had been waiting in the office even before Gai had arrived. Granted, he had come here on his hands, but still. Soon after Jonin and Academy instructors began to fill in the place. The Green Beast received many strange looks, even more than usual. Not many were aware that he needed a third member for his team or why. When Kakashi finally showed, perverted book in tow, they began to observe the potential Genin through the crystal ball.

Many of the girls were fawning over Uchiha-san, clearly most of them wouldn't make it as shinobi; possibly the Haruno girl and the Yamanaka girl had the genetic talent. The Nara boy looked half sleep already, his longtime friend chomping away on a bottomless bag of potato chips. The Aburame was sitting so still one might believe he was asleep behind those sunglasses. The Hyuuga heiress simply sat quietly, sneaking glances to the upper corner of the room every now and then.

What surprised most of the instructors in the room, and the Hokage, was the person sitting in that far corner. Uzumaki Naruto, as they knew him, was just sitting, staring out the window with empty eyes.

"Hey! What is _he_ doing there? I know for a fact that Uzumaki failed!" an instructor demanded.

"Oh that's right. I don't believe that you are all aware that Naruto passed a..special examination last night. Iurka-san felt that Naruto should be allowed to graduate with his peers." The aged Hokage explained calmly, though there was always that steel undertone that so many feared and respected. "Now then, we shall discuss the nine students who will be considered for becoming Genin and place them into teams."

Sarutobi looked to his son. "Asuma." the named Jonin straightened a bit as his name was called out. "Because you have been on the most missions with the Ino-Shika-Cho team, you will take Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akimichi Choji as Team Ten. It is most likely that they will work together efficiently enough as a squad of capture and interrogation."

"Hm." the Hokage murmured as he gazed at a sheet of paper. "The next squad shall be formed of Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, and Inuzuka Kiba of Team Eight under Yuhi Kurenai. A tracking and reconnaissance team." The red eyed Jonin nodded in recognition, happy to have gotten the Hyuuga heiress onto her team.

Sandaime glanced to Kakashi, who was half paying attention to the meeting. "It is unanimous that Kakashi will train Sasuke, being the only other Sharingan user..in Konoha." Sarutobi openly acknowledged the missing ninja Uchiha Itachi.

Several murmurs of agreement and encouragement ran through the room. Clearly they all wanted Sasuke trained to achieve the height of his abilities.

"So," Kakashi spoke lazily, "who are my other two students." He didn't even sound interested enough to want the answer.

"Haruno Sakura scored the top marks among all the kunoichi and will therefore be placed with the top shinobi, Uchiha Sasuke." Sandaime answered. "Your third student will naturally be the one with the lowest marks, Uzu-"

Gai took this moment to interject. "Pardon me Hokage-sama, but I would like to request that Naruto be placed on my team!" he exclaimed while proudly jerking a thumb toward himself.

The Hokage seemed surprised by this, but not nearly as much as the others in the room. "What are you smokin Gai?" Genma asked casually. Upon hearing the two of the Sarutobi clan clear their throats, he gently rephrased the question. "I mean, what are you high on Gai?"

Gai instantly gave a charming smile. "The flames of youth of course!"

Genma sweat-dropped, as did others in the room. "Well it was clearly my mistake for asking like that..what I mean is, don't you already have a full roster Genin Team?"

Gai sighed, his smile dropping. "No longer, I'm afraid." he denied as he shook his head. "My student Rock Lee has left Konoha for reasons that are his own, with Hokage-sama's permission. As there are no students in need of a team at the moment, I must chose a disciple from this years graduating class. And there is no one better suited for my team than a youthful spirit such a Naruto!" the green man finished with excitement.

The Hokage made a thoughtful noise as he leaned back in his seat, considering this. "It is the tradition to rank lowest ranking students with the highest scoring.."

Gai was undeterred. "That may be," he agreed, "however, Naruto's scores are the equivalence of what Lee's were. Considering that Hyuuga Neji is on my team, that makes it even."

Kakashis visible eye widened a fraction. "That makes a surprising amount of sense..coming from Gai."

Deciding to ignore that for the moment, the Green Beast went on. "Furthermore," he continued with a 'logical' face, "would it not be more fair to consider Naruto's personal growth? His potential would surely not be reached if he were to be taught by Kakashi!" he gestured wildly and, by some miracle, toward said Jonin.

Icha Icha Paradise would have to wait. Snapping his book shut, and fighting the urge to ask Gai if he said something, Kakashi's eye narrowed slightly. "Are you saying I'm not a capable sensei?" he asked evenly.

"Not a all rival!" Gai dismissed with a boisterous laugh. "I am simply stating that a student such as Naruto would do better under my supervision."

"How so?" Sandaime asked, interested.

"For one thing," Gai held up a finger, "You have already seen what I can do with a student labeled as a 'dead last' by the academy."

Several faces became sheepish at that. The instructors had all believed that Rock Lee simply could not be a ninja. Gai had shown them up by proving it was their instructing that had caused Lee to be no good.

"Secondly," Gai continued, holding up a second finger, "Kakashi is a born genius. Naruto is...not. Would a genius such as Kakashi be able to understand and bring out the potential of a student who lacks his natural talent? Especially since Naruto is not of any clan, unlike the larger number of students planned to graduate this year. Thirdly, Kakashi will undoubtably be giving the young Uchiha special attention; where would that leave Naruto?"

By now Gai was giving the Hokage his 'intense' stare. This consisted of leaning onto his desk with both hands, one eye shut as he other bore into the aged ninja, his head shifting directions slightly.

The Hokage sighed. "Gai, what have we said about personal space?" His tone one that he would normally take with a child...mostly because he _had _been telling Gai this since he was a child.

Gai leaned back. "I have no idea." he admitted honestly.

Another sigh. "Despite the..theatrical presentation, you have made your point more than valid. And I suppose that taking Naruto out of this class would make the new student Sai his replacement for Kakashi's Team Seven. Very well. I grant you Uzumaki Naruto for the existing Team One."

"What an honor." one of the instructors muttered sarcastically as the Hokage dispensed teams that were not meant to pass.

Gai's response. "Yosh!"

* * *

I would like to thank my Beta, Teh Randomness Girl for her excellent work, as always.

**The Pitch:** This was originally going to be a NaruTema due to my other story, Naruto Uzumaki: Shinobi of the World, not containing that pairing. However, upon my changing of that scenario, I decided that this should be a NaruTen due to the popularity of this among my fans and there being so few (100 exactly, only one fifth of which are completed). So I came up with a way to have Lee out of Konoha for the time being and Naruto can get a good teacher.

**My Beef Against Kakashi:** Let me make it clear that I don't hate Kakashi as a character. He's actually quite cool, which is why it irritates the hell out of me that he's such a crappy teacher. I guess I'll start from the beginning. (Cracks knuckles)

Kakashi's treatment of Naruto was wrong starting from the bell test. How on earth do you expect a boy who has been ostracized by his own village to just grasp the concept of teamwork like that? Naruto's never had anyone really looking out for him, especially not his classmates. While the exercise would be understandable for Sasuke (if he weren't such a stuck up prick) as he has been pampered by his village, it makes no sense for Kakashi to reasonably expect Naruto to rely on two people who have never been there for him, i,e. Sasuke and Sakura, to help him. Naruto, despite his outgoing personality, is a loner from the beginning of the series. What kind of f&king idiot is Kakashi not to be able to see that anyway?

Next is the training. Or lack thereof. Let's list what Kakashi taught Naruto before the time skip: Climbing Trees...and that's it. Kakashi regards Sasuke more highly than Naruto, that much is pitifully obvious; as he watched Neji fight Hinata, he privately thought that not even **Sasuke** could stand up to him, as if that bastard set the bar for Genin standards; also when he told Naruto that he couldn't train him, he blatantly said he had **more** **important **things to take care of (though it was different in Japanese but delivers the same message). We all know that how Kakashi abandoned Naruto during the one month break of the Chunin exam is more than a little messed up. Granted that things worked out for the best (with Naruto finding a stronger teacher more willing to train him) Kakashi didn't know that would happen. What exactly was better chakra control going to do to help Naruto defeat a Hyuuga prodigy!? He probably planned on Naruto losing and training him in the next exam, the bastard.

First and foremost, if you can't train more than one student at once, don't take a **three man **squad. Secondly, Kakashi knows the Kage Bunshin. He freakin knows it! Why couldn't he have at least made one to instruct Naruto. Thirdly, and this is the kicker, he had the _gall _to reprimand Jiraiya for teaching Naruto the Rasengan after he had taught **Sasuke** the **Chidori**! This clearly indicates that, while he knew the technique all along, Kakashi had no plans of teaching it to Naruto because he didn't think he could handle it appropriately. WTF did he think Sunshine boy was going to do with the Chidori; use it as a magnetic force to attract an ice cream truck for the Konohamaru corps to have a snack!? Hell no! He actually believed that Sasuke would use it to protect his fellow shinobi of the Leaf. Didn't he spend a lot of alone time with Sasuke? You'd think he was a little more observant of the fact that everything Sasuke did was toward killing Itachi...especially since the prick had said that! Argh! Baka! Baka! Baka!

This whole thing has really been eating at me after I saw Naruto's new training after the time skip. Kakashi had said that Sasuke had taken several days learning how to use lightning. How long did it take Naruto to master his element? One. Freaking. Day. Okay, so maybe Naruto couldn't create a thousand clones on the fly during the Chunin exams, but he was pretty damn close. Also, let's not forget the rather ironic fact that Naruto mastered the Rasengan in roughly one month, the same amount of time taken to train for the third round...a rather obvious smear on Kakashi's poor teaching. The idiot doesn't even realize how Jiraiya taught Naruto the Rasengan because Kakashi is a genius ninja and Naruto is not and therefore the copy-ninja cannot teach it to Naruto.

Kakashi is and excellent ninja. The top jounin in Konohagakure. Former ANBU captain. But I'll be damned if he ain't a sh$ty sensei.


	2. Meeting the Team

**Konoha's Scarlet Flash**

A/N: Three months since I updated. Guess I'm the negligent bastard now. More on that later.

Chapter 2: Meeting the Team

Looking worse for the wear (as ruffed up as a kid in an orange jumpsuit could look, anyway) Naruto stumbled up the steps of the Hokage tower, the Forbidden Scroll of Whatever strapped to his back. Iruka-sensei lead the way, still lightly berating the blonde for his rash actions.

"Seriously, Naruto, stealing a scroll that has 'Forbidden' in the title." The scarred ninja sighed as he bopped Naruto on the head playfully. "Be thankful you graduated, falling for that."

"Yeah, yeah." the blonde grumbled. "What can I say? I'm a baka." he replied distractedly.

Iruka frowned slightly at his former student. The chunin himself was trying not to dwell on the..._unpleasant_ subjects touched upon last night. Mizuki, the prick, had broken the Hokage's law and told Naruto that the Kyuubi had not been killed twelve years ago. That it had, instead, been sealed into the young ninja. He had even told Naruto that he and his inner demon were the same being. Iruka knew that couldn't be further from the truth. But with the way the majority of the village treated Naruto and how he learned of it's sealing..

Would Naruto believe it himself? The thought plagued him.

The plan had been for Iruka or the Hokage himself to tell the blonde over ramen after he had become a genin. That obviously did not happen. Now Hokage-sama wanted to speak with Naruto privately, even though he knew the blonde was now aware of the demon in his belly.

Maybe it was about the secret jutsu the genin had read about; jutsu that could probably endanger the village?

Ugh. The council wouldn't let this slide.

Iruka had successfully escorted the blonde to the Hokage's busy office. Large piles of paper were stacked around the room. The scarred man didn't doubt Naruto's name and his exploits were in a large number of these papers.

"Arigato for bringing Naruto here, Iruka-san." the grand-fatherly ninja eyed the chunin for moment. "You are dismissed. Be sure to have yourself checked out at the hospital."

Iruka nodded and made his way to leave, laying a comforting hand on the blondes shoulder before exiting.

As soon as the door closed the slight grin Naruto had completely faded. His eyes became distant yet guarded as they bore into the old man.

It didn't take a master of the ninja arts to see that Naruto was quite upset with him. And things would probably worsen before they got better.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun. How are you feeling?" The genuinely sincere question only earned him a blank stare. Sarutobi coughed into his hand. "Well, I understand that you are now aware of certain..sensitive information. Is that true?"

After a few moments of simply staring, Naruto nodded. "Hai. There's a demon sealed inside me." he confirmed in a deadpan voice that was so clearly out of character the Hokage nearly cringed. "Why didn't you tell me?" the boy asked coldly.

"It was not my intention to hide this from you for much longer..." the Third answered, lacing his fingers. "I just wanted you to mentally brace yourself before being told. I couldn't have imagined a more unsound fashion for you to learn of Kyuubi than how you did... And I'm sorry for that."

Naruto nodded, accepting the apology but not exactly extending his forgiveness. That would be too much for the elderly ninja to hope for. Sarutobi was just fortunate that the young fox vessel hadn't run off with the scroll like Mizuki said he would.

"Is that all...old man?" The boy asked quietly.

A brief smile graced the Hokage. If Naruto was still calling him that... "There is one last thing." he said, removing a scroll from a heavily sealed box. He tossed it to Naruto, who caught it, eying it curiously. Sandaime was met with a befuddled stare as Naruto opened and examined the scroll.

The scroll itself was blank, but a key was held in the upper corner.

Naruto eyed the key. The address was attached to it. Being well traveled in the village (what with the plethora of Chunin, Jonin, and ANBU chasing him around) Naruto recognized it as the swank part of town.

Rolling up the scroll and stuffing it into his pocket, Naruto made his way out of Hokage's office with a less than polite farewell. Sandaime merely sighed, glancing out of the window at the stone likeness of the Yondaime. With a hefty sigh, the aged ninja continued his arduous task of filing paperwork and approving suitable missions. His disciplined mind already thinking of the appropriate teams.

With his feet wandering aimlessly, the Jinchuuriki paid little attention to his destination. The option of returning to his rundown apartment was briefly considered before being cast aside. No way he was going to get to sleep anytime soon. Too much to think about.

When he looked up, Naruto found himself at the top of the Hokage Monument. He always came here when something was really bothering him. This definitely qualified. He hesitantly sat himself down onto the usual spot, on top of the Yondaime's spiked hair. He sat there for hours as the sun rose, just thinking about his life; past, present and future.

It had always been Uzumaki Naruto's firm belief that people had always hated and despised him because he had no family. Just an abandoned orphan who was to be looked down upon. No heritage. No family. Nothing.

People didn't respect him. So he figured by becoming the Hokage, the strongest ninja in the village, they wouldn't have any choice but to acknowledge him as great. Now he wasn't so sure things would work out like that.

The blonde wondered, oh how he wondered, what became of his family. He was the only Uzumaki in Konoha. He checked on several occasions. Naruto began to wonder why Yondaime had chosen him to be the vessel for the Kyuubi. Had his parents sold him to the village, just up and gave him away as a sacrifice as they lived a life of luxury in some far off country?

He thought it best not to linger on such thoughts, lest he reach for a kunai.

Naruto rose from his seated position and with one last look at the top of the Hokage's Monument, made his way to the academy. It was usually open very early, not that he would know _personally_. Arriving quickly, Naruto found very few in the building and that he was the first student to arrive. First time for everything, he supposed.

He took a seat at the upper corner of the room near a window and laid his head down, hoping to get in a quick nap before being assigned a team. He never really got to sleep fully, but his eyes were well rested.

All too soon the students began to flock into he room, murmuring amongst themselves about there excitement of becoming shinobi and, upon noticing him, his presence. Naruto only kept his head down.

"What do ya think the_ kid's_ doing here?"

One of the students snorted. "Probably just showing off, the retard. He failed so they'll be dragging him away soon."

Another student chuckled. "Class clown to the very end. At least he should provide us with some entertainment. Otherwise he's just a waste of space, right?"

Naruto clenched his fist as they laughed at his expense, but made no other signs of consciousness. It wasn't until after Iruka cleared his throat in the front of the room that Naruto lifted his head; revealing his headband and shutting up a large portion of the class. He even heard a decidedly feminine gasp. It sounded almost..pleased.

Iruka gave a generic congratulations to the class as a whole. He slightly tailored it for each year's students but it carried the same message every year. Have pried in your village and do your best. And he said the latter knowing full well that most of the students would not go on to become ninja. The poor bastards.

"All right then," he called after they began to calm from his speech, "I will now read the teams you will be assigned as well as your jonin sensei. Team 1:..." Iruka began to list students that he knew for a fact would not be passing.

Naruto was still in a deep sea of self-pity, paying only a fraction of his limited attention span to Iruka. Anytime before today he would have been on his knees praying to whatever deities weren't cursing him so he could end up on the same team as Sakura. Right now though, the pink haired girl was completely off his radar.

Now back to Iruka, who is now naming teams that we care about. "Team 7: Sai, Haruno Sakura, and Uchiha Sasuke. Your sensei is Hatake Kakashi. Team 8: Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata, and Aburame Shino, lead by Yuhi Kurenai." Iruka again lists a team that have no future as shinobi. "And Team 10: Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji, and Yamanaka Ino. You will be under the instruction of Sarutobi Asuma. Those are all the teams listed from this years students. I wish you all luck." And if there were more students to be named for teams after team 10...who cares?

Naruto blinked a few times. Sure he was a bit out of it but he still would have heard his name. "Iruka-sensei," he called, raising his hand, "I didn't hear my name. Don't I get a team?"

The scarred chunin scratched his head sheepishly, embarrassed. "Ah, sorry Naruto. I forgot to tell you. You've been drafted to be the placed on a team from last year. A personal request from the jonin sensei." Iruka paused, enjoying some of the gawking expressions. "You're to present yourself at training area one, ASAP."

"Uh.. Who's gonna be my sensei?" Naruto asked carefully. If it was a request from the jonin leader than they probably wouldn't mind having him on the team. But still, he wondered. And with pretty damn good reason to.

Iruka seemed an odd mix of amused and hesitant. "Believe me," the chunin said, smiling uneasily, "you will know him when you see him." _You can't miss him actually..._

Some of the class broke into disbelieving whispers. What Jonin in their right mind would _want_ the dead last on their team? They probably couldn't find any other place to keep him out of the way. Naruto ignored them as he made his way to the exit. It was thanks only to his sharp hearing that he heard the number one rookie's scoff.

"Dobe."

"Teme." he responded automatically, business as usual for Naruto and Sasuke. Well at least some things didn't change and the blonde took comfort in that. Both boys shared hidden grins as Naruto departed from the class.

After wandering for a bit Naruto made his way to the designated training area. The terrain was wide and grassy with three training logs in the middle. Well, two logs and one that was utterly demolished and lie in pieces. The orange clad ninja looked around and found no one in he area.

Suddenly the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. It wasn't shinobi training but instinct that told him someone was behind him. It was right.

Standing over the demolished log was a tall, muscular man in a green jumpsuit that left just enough to the imagination not to be voyeurism. Eyebrows that were_ at least_ two inches thick hung over the man's eyes like fuzzy leeches. His haircut seemed to have been fashioned after one of the Ichiraku ramen bowls.

It was like a train wreck...he couldn't tear his eyes away.

Oblivious of his newest students well-founded apprehension, Gai strode over to the young lad with a blinding grin. "Ah, you must be Uzumaki Naruto! Salutations and congratulations on joining the ninja ranks of Konoha!"

The man shook his fist with what Naruto at first perceived as rage...until he realized it was barely contained enthusiasm. Something he trademarked. "Such a youthful spirit...it is beautiful!"

"...Thanks..?" the blonde responded meekly, finding himself unable to look the man directly in his beady, black eyes.

The odd ninja waved him off with a thumbs up. "It is unwise not to acknowledge one who is so full of youthful flare. Now come! Follow me on the path of youth and become acquainted with your new comrades!" the man exclaimed animatedly, making an odd pose and pointing in the direction of the village.

After deciphering that as meeting his teammates, the new ninja nodded his consent and soon found himself at the top of a large building. There was a large roof and railing to prevent people from falling off. The railing was lined with seats. Two of which were currently occupied.

Naruto looked upon the his new teammates.

One had eyes that, while the same color as Hinata's, weren't nearly as warm. In fact, Naruto would be hard-pressed not to recognize that look. It was the same as some of the more passive villagers gave him. Just starring as if he wasn't even there. Like he was lower than an insect. As if...he didn't even deserve to exist.

_I don't like this guy..._

The other was a girl with tanned skin much like his own. Her hair was done up in a practical style of two buns; probably to keep it out her face when she was fighting. Naruto never really got why most of the girls at the academy wore their hair so long. Not something you see everyday. Her style of dress was also more traditional, and showed off her lean arms. An old fashioned kind of girl, apparently. She was twirling a kunai on her finger by the ring with only the faintest of interests.

Gai, who had finally reached the top after scaling the building with one hand tied behind his back, looked on stealthily as his students silently got to know one another.

"Well Naruto, I see you have meet your two teammates." Gai wrongly observed as he hopped over the railing.

"Actually he hasn't said a word," the girl with the buns said. She pointed to him. "So, who's the new meat?" she asked, eying him as such.

The white eyed boy crossed his arms. "He already told us. Apparently this is to be Lee's replacement."

Gai gave a complementing pat on the shoulder to the young prodigy. "Astute as always, Neji. Quite correct. This is a student who graduated from the academy this morning. Why don't you all get acquainted?"

A look of understanding adorned the girl's face. "Oh, cool. Well..I guess it would be rude to ask your name without introducing myself, right? My name is Tenten, pleasure to meet you. I want to become a great kunoichi like Tsunade-sama." Her eyes took a glint familiar to the Sasuke fan-girls as she let loose a dreamy sigh. Tenten then glanced at the boy sitting next to him and gave him a rough elbow to the rib-cage.

The boy grunted indignantly. "What would be the point? This one probably won't last any longer than Lee."

Gai laughed boisterously, either believing Neji's words naive or ignoring that it could be taken as a death threat. "Nonsense. The flames of youth burn brightly in this one." he said with the utmost confidence.

Naruto, however, was a bit unnerved. "Ano..what happened to this Lee guy?"

The kunoichi's lips turned upwards as she saw an opportunity to tease their new teammate. "Oh..they didn't tell you?" she asked somberly, shaking her head. "The poor guy. We could only find the arms."

The blonde paled rapidly. Was that why he was sent to this team? As cannon-fodder? Was this a way to finally be rid of the curse of Konoha?

Tenten giggled. "Oh relax! I'm just kidding." she smacked him on the back in emphasis. _Hard_, in his opinion. "Lee's on an extended training leave outside the village." Her warm, brown eyes turned to the Hyuuga prodigy. "Now, I believe you were going to introduce yourself?"

Neji only gave her a mild stare and crossed his arms. He'd said enough for today.

Tenten frowned before a sadistic grin lit up her face. She leaned forward and whispered something in Neji's ear that Naruto didn't catch. That's partially why he was astonished when the Hyuuga's eyes widened and faint blush formed on his cheeks.

"Impossible," he exclaimed, turning toward her, "not even _you_ can do that with a _kunai_!"

His only response was slight grin that said 'Try me'.

With a bored gaze Neji looked to the blonde and introduced himself. "Hyuuga Neji. What I fight for...I'd rather not say." In hi own way..of course.

"And I," Gai began, proudly jerking a thumb towards himself, "am Maito Gai. Konoha's spouting leaf of acceptance and eternal rival to Hatake Kakashi!"

Cerulean eyes turned to Tenten, as she seemed to be the most sensible and open of the group. "Don't ask." the girl dead panned with a sigh.

Naruto grinned slightly as he prepared his rehearsed introduction. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I like eating ramen and comparing different types of ramen. I hate the three minutes it takes for ramen to boil...also stuck up bastards who think they're better than everyone else. And my dream is to become the greatest Hokage ever...even better than Yondaime." he whispered at the end.

Neji snorted in amusement. "You? Become Hokage? A fitting replacement for Lee. Your goals are even more farfetched."

In an instant Naruto was in Neji's face, glaring at the bastard. "What did you say!?"

Neji didn't flinch, only scowling at the blonde baka for intruding on his personal space. "I said there is no way you could ever become Hokage. It is not your fate."

Naruto's face flashed from rage to confusion in an instant. "Nani?"

"It's simple. Everyone is born with a distinctive path that they must follow. Their destiny. To deny that fate is pointless. I know that you scored the lowest of all Genin this year. You are a failure, and nothing will change that." Neji finished in an absolute way.

Gai's thick eyebrows bunched together as he frowned. What an unyouthful thing to say.

Tenten sighed and shook her head. This was a repeat of the first introductions all over again.

Naruto, for his part, simply stared at the Hyuuga prodigy for a full minute with a confused face. He looked almost as if Neji's words just...didn't...compute. Then he looked Neji right in the eyes with a slight frown and spoke.

"That's the dumbest shit I ever heard."

Neji only shook his head. "As if you would understand. You're far too ignorant to face the facts of life. It will be a lesson you learn far too late."

Naruto jumped up and nearly onto the railing. "Oh yeah!? So when life deals you a bad hand you just bend over and take it!? Screw that! I'm gonna be the greatest Hokage ever no mater what 'destiny' says, dumbass!"

The Hyuuga smirked coldly. "So are saying anyone who puts forth enough effort can become a Hokage? Impossible. Only a select few in all the village ever become Hokage. You do not simply choose to become one."

The blonde glared ferally. "Care to test fate then?"

"Hmm," Tenten murmured as she pulled out a watch, "two minutes to provoke someone into a fight. That tops your record with Lee."

Gai perceived the event in his usual distorted manner. "Yosh! A sparring match between young Naruto and the experienced Neji. This is an grand way to test Naruto's current skill level! Excellent thinking team!"

Tenten rolled her eyes. _Gai-sensei, you maniac._ she thought with fond exasperation.

Soon the newly reformed Team One found themselves at their designated training area provided to them by the Hokage. Naruto and Neji stood across the field glaring at one another. Well, Naruto glared, Neji just gave him.._that damned_ look. The look he hated so much.

"All right," Gai called as he puled two flags from nowhere, one orange and the other white, "this is a simple sparring match so no deadly maneuvers. Let's keep this within the boundaries Konoha civility."

Neji smirked slightly. "There is no need to worry. This will be over quickly."

Naruto was sleep depraved and vaguely remembered that his bastard teammate was the number one rookie of last year. But he'd be damned if he was gonna let him think hard work didn't pay off. Naruto had struggled throughout his entire life just to _survive_. He would become Hokage.

He _would_!

Tenten approached her new blonde teammate to whisper in his ear. He briefly considered flinching back, thinking of Neji's earlier reaction "Naruto...it is Naruto right?"

Not lessening his glare at Neji, the blonde nodded.

"Well, I'm not trying to knock your goals or anything but...believe me when I tell you that there is no way you can defeat Neji. He's narrowminded but still a genius, the strongest Hyuuga born in a century. Please, just back down. No fresh genin deserves to fight him..."

His glare disappeared completely as he stared impassively at her. She half expected him to explode after a while but instead...

He bowed his head.

"Arigato for your concern, Tenten-san, but I have to fight him. Even if I don't win now, I can still train hard and beat him then. That will show him that destiny can kiss my ass."

A bit bewildered by the seemingly irrational confidence the blonde held, Tenten nodded dumbly and made her way to Gai.

_This should be interesting._

Neji took a stance that Naruto's instincts took as threatening. The prodigy's arm was extended with the palm facing Naruto with the other held tightly at his side. "Anytime your ready." the boy invited smoothly.

Naruto cracked his knuckles. "I'm gonna make you eat those words!" And with that, Naruto charged with his fist raised, clearly intending on a punch.

The instant Naruto moved, a frown formed on the usually unflappable Gai's face. _That form...it's awful.. _Then he grinned, thinking he'd figured out what the blue-eyed boy was doing. _He must be setting Neji up to lower his defenses before showing his true potential. A slow right hook followed by a rabbit punch to distort the target. It won't work on Neji. But it is an admirable strategy._ Gai thought, nodding to himself and completely unaware he was giving the blonde _way_ too much credit.

A right hook sailed over Neji's head as he ducked, laying a harsh palm thrust to the blonde's abdomen. He hadn't bothered to activate his Byakugan because Juken would be wasted on this fool. He was even worse than Lee had been!

Naruto rolled onto his back and pushed his body up to recover. He sprinted toward Neji at a pace that was sluggish to all parties present. A flurry of punches were all blocked by the expertly trained hands of Hyuuga Neji. Naruto finished up with a wide arched kick to the older genin's head. His stance and movement was so poor he almost lost his footing.

Off to the side Gai slowly clenched and unclenched his fists with escalating pressure. He could tell he had been severely mistaken earlier. From the fiery determination and frustration in his eyes to the body language. _This..is not a distraction _he realized. _This is how Naruto has been taught to fight... _

Neji knocked the numskull off his feet and flipped him away. Naruto landed on his hands and stumbled to the ground before jumping up. He was panting heavily but Neji, to his disbelief, looked as if he had gone on mild jog. An extremely _mild _jog.

A blank stare was placed on Naruto. "Is that all you've got?" Neji asked, sounding severely disappointed.

A growl was his answer. "I'll show you what I got!" Naruto formed his hands into a cross-like seal. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Smoke clouded the vison of all present. As a small gust blew it away, Tenten's eyes became wide a saucers, her mouth gaping. Gai only grinned widely..almost maniacally. Where only one had been a few moments ago there were now thirty Narutos standing in the clearing.

Neji blinked before activating his Doujutsu. "So you aren't completely useless after all."

"Heh, just wait and see!" the original, he believed, called. "All right! Attack!"

With the force of a stampede the army of blondness charged for Neji. Said Hyuuga began to attack and destroy the shadow clones in a systematic manner, dodging punches, kicks and kunai as he lessened the number of enemies. One particularly annoying clone snuck up behind him and attempted a double fisted knockout blow to the neck. It only succeeded in destroying another clone as Neji dodged, bending sharply at the waist, and sent a chakra burst to it's throat.

With a final chakra laced palm thrust the last of the clones was dispersed. Neji dashed for the last Naruto quickly enough to leave an after image. The blondes eyes widened and his mouth drew agape as Neji pulled back his palm to deliver the final blow.

Or so he thought.

Naruto smirked before disappearing in a puff of smoke. _A decoy!_ The Hyuuga realized. He shifted his head just enough to see a fist flying for his blind spot. Neji deflected the attack with a burst of chakra and spun around to strike Naruto in the abdomen. The amount of chakra hadn't been crippling but enough to stop the blonde.

Hunched over on the ground, the orange ninja clutched his stomach. What did that bastard do!? It felt like his insides were on fire!

Gai was by the blondes side before anyone noticed him move. "No need to fret Naruto. You're going to be just fine!" he exclaimed cheerfully, despite the writhing pain he knew the boy was experiencing. "You put forth a valiant effort Naruto and I was able to gauge your skills. Well done! However," he raised the white flag, "Neji is the winner!"

The fresh genin rose shakily to his feet. The burning sensation in his stomach was being taken over by another one. But it was...pleasant, in a sense.

Gai placed his hand on Naruto's forehead as if to feel his temperature. Of course, it seemed to escape his attention that Naruto's headband made the effort completely in vain. "You seem to be running a fever Naruto. My first order as your sensei if for you to go home and rest for the day."

"What!?" Naruto slapped the man's hand away. "How could you feel my forehead when I'm wearing my.." Naruto trailed off as he placed his hand on his forehead to find it bare. His headband in Gai's hand. "Er, maybe I should lie down..."

Gai nodded and turned to his team's killer kunoichi. "Tenten." he called. The girl, who had been conversing with Neji about something, jogged over. "Would you please escort Naruto to his home?"

Tenten chuckled a little and shook her head. "I thought the boy was supposed to do that."

"I think you'd be up for the job, Ten-boy." Naruto joked though the pain.

Tenten 'playfully' punched his arm in response. It reminded him of when Sakura bashed him on the skull...and this girl was docile. He shouldn't get on her bad side.

The two were soon walking side by side as they exited the training field. When he was sure they were out of earshot, Gai turned to his distant student. Neji had his arms crossed, staring at Naruto and Tenten with a slight frown.

He approached with a 'stern' stare. "Neji..I'd like to ask a favor of you..."

* * *

Wow. Almost fifty reviews. And here I was expecting only about twelve. Oh well.

Anyway, about this story. It's a damn shame but I just haven't been giving it the attention it deserves. And I probably never will. I never intended to spend much time on this story, as it was just to make it up to _some_ NaruTen fans of my other story. It isn't that I have writers block or anything, I'm just not _inspired_ to write for this story.

However, I'm not simply the type to apologize and not try to make something better so here's the deal. This story is officially up for adoption to any writer willing and whom I feel comfortable will do a good job.

There are specific jutsu and other elements of the story that I will pass along but the rest will be up to that writer. If you're interested just say so in a review and I will check out what you have previously written on FF. net. As a resume.

And if no one is interested, updates will continue to be slow, but the story will not be abandoned.


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